Publications by authors named "Luisa Hoffmann"

Introduction: The identification of type 1 diabetes at an early presymptomatic stage has clinical benefits. These include a reduced risk of diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) at the clinical manifestation of the disease and a significant reduction in clinical symptoms. The European action for the Diagnosis of Early Non-clinical Type 1 diabetes For disease Interception (EDENT1FI) represents a pioneering effort to advance early detection of type 1 diabetes through public health screening.

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Oligonucleotides have emerged as important therapeutic options for inherited diseases. In recent years, RNA therapeutics, especially mRNA, have been pushed to the market. Analytical methods for these molecules have been published extensively in the last few years.

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The spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), causing the COVID-19 outbreak, posed a primary concern of public health worldwide. The most common changes in SARS-CoV-2 are single nucleotide substitutions, also reported insertions and deletions. This work investigates the presence of SARS-CoV-2 ORF7a deletions identified in COVID-19-positive individuals.

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The 1918 influenza pandemic was the deadliest respiratory pandemic of the 20th century and determined the genomic make-up of subsequent human influenza A viruses (IAV). Here, we analyze both the first 1918 IAV genomes from Europe and the first from samples prior to the autumn peak. 1918 IAV genomic diversity is consistent with a combination of local transmission and long-distance dispersal events.

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Background: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a global public health problem. Second-generation direct-acting antivirals targeting non-structural regions on the viral genome are the cornerstone for treatment of chronic infection. However, resistance-associated variants (RAVs) have been reported to be associated with therapeutic failure.

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Introduction: Rapamycin (Rapa) is an immunosuppressive macrolide that inhibits the mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) activity. Thanks to its anti-proliferative effects towards different cell types, including keratinocytes and T cells, Rapa shows promise in the treatment of skin diseases characterized by cell hyperproliferation. However, Rapa skin penetration is limited due to its lipophilic nature (log = 4.

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The use of penetration enhancers (chemical or physical) has been proven to dramatically improve the penetration of therapeutics. Nevertheless, their use poses great risks, as they can lead to permanent damage of the skin, reduce its barrier efficiency, and result in the intrusion of harmful substances. Among the most used skin penetration enhancers, water is greatly accepted because skin quickly recovers from its exposure.

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Purpose: Calcitriol, or 1,25-hydroxycholecalciferol, is the active form of vitamin D. It binds and activates vitamin D receptor (VDR). Infertility and defective folliculogenesis have been observed in female knockout mice; however, whether polymorphisms affect human ovarian responses to controlled ovarian stimulation (COS) remains unclear.

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Our comprehension of the dynamics and diversity of freshwater planktonic bacterial communities is far from complete concerning the Brazilian Amazonian region. Therefore, reference studies are urgently needed. We mapped bacterial communities present in the planktonic communities of a freshwater artificial reservoir located in the western Amazonian basin.

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Pristine forest ecosystems provide a unique perspective for the study of plant-associated microbiota since they host a great microbial diversity. Although the Amazon forest is one of the hotspots of biodiversity around the world, few metagenomic studies described its microbial community diversity thus far. Understanding the environmental factors that can cause shifts in microbial profiles is key to improving soil health and biogeochemical cycles.

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We report here the draft genome sequences of two Brazilian strains of , a saxitoxin-producer (CYRF) and a non-saxitoxin producer (CYLP), with each strain comprising one assembled scaffold. We revealed differences in the compositions of gene members coding for membrane transporters and antioxidant activities between the strains.

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Trypanosomatids are parasites that cause disease in humans, animals, and plants. Most are non-pathogenic and some harbor a symbiotic bacterium. Endosymbiosis is part of the evolutionary process of vital cell functions such as respiration and photosynthesis.

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Background: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurological disease that selectively affects the motor neurons. The details of the mechanisms of selective motor-neuron death remain unknown and no effective therapy has been developed. We investigated the therapy with bone-marrow mononuclear cells (BMMC) in a mouse model of ALS (SOD1(G93A) mice).

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Direct-acting antiviral (DAA)-based therapy is the new standard treatment for chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. However, protease inhibitor (PI)-resistant viral variants have been often described. This study aimed to examine HCV-NS3 protease variants at baseline and at 4 weeks under triple therapy.

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Background: Several Trypanosoma species transmitted by leeches infect marine and freshwater fish worldwide. To date, all South American fish trypanosome species identified have been based on unreliable morphological parameters. We recently isolated and cultured trypanosomes from the Brazilian armoured catfishes Hypostomus luetkeni and H.

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Unlabelled: About sixty thousand new cases of Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection are recorded in Brazil each year. These cases are currently treated with pegylated interferon (PEG-IFN) and ribavirin (RBV) with an overall success rate of 50%. New compounds for anti-HCV therapy targeted to the HCV NS3 protease are being developed and some already form the components of licensed therapies.

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Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the interleukin (IL)28B locus have been associated with a sustained virological response (SVR) in interferon-ribavirin (IFN-RBV)-treated chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV)-infected patients in European and African populations. In this study, the genotype frequency of two IL28B SNPs (rs129679860 and rs8099917) in a cohort of chronic HCV-monoinfected patients in Brazil was evaluated and the SNP sufficient to predict the treatment response outcome was determined. A total of 66 naïve genotype-1 chronic HCV-infected patients were genotyped and the associated viral kinetics and SVR were assessed.

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Background: Cytokines play an important role in the regulation of the immune response. In hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, cytokine levels may influence the outcome of acute HCV infection. Polymorphisms in cytokine genes have been associated to different expression levels in response to infection.

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